There emerges one undeniable leader of the lesbian renaissance: Missouri lesbian pop princess Chappell Roan. Last weekend, the singer performed at Kentuckiana Pride Foundation Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, and her look paid homage to the ultimate queer legend Divine in the John Waters film Pink Flamingos. Wearing a red sequined gown over a leopard print bodysuit, her make-up mimicked Divine’s signature style, with high thin pencilled brows, lined lips, blue eyeshadow, hot pink blushed cheeks, and lots of eyeliner. 

The looks came courtesy of make-up artist Andrew Dahling, who was also behind her viral Gov Ball look, where the singer resembled the Statue of Liberty with her full body painted in green. Posting the look on Instagram, Roan quoted Divine’s famous lines from the film: “Filth is my politics! Filth is my life!” She added that the look was inspired by Divine, who she called “the most beautiful woman in the world, almost <3”.

Roan has previously spoken about her appreciation for drag aesthetics and culture, describing her persona as a “drag queen version of myself”. Having openly expressed admiration for Sasha Colby, the winner of Season 15 RuPaul’s Drag Race, the singer has leveraged her newfound fame to spotlight the drag scene, pulling queens from local drag communities as opening acts for her Midwest Princess tour. 

Her performance at the Louisville Pride event comes just a week after she announced that she had turned down an offer to perform at the White House. While dressed as the Statue of Liberty at the Gov Ball, Roan dedicated her song “My Kink Is Karma” to the administration, saying: “As a response to the White House who asked me to perform at Pride: we want liberty, justice and freedom for all… When you do that, that’s when I’ll come.”

Later on in the set, she quoted the lines etched on the Statue of Liberty, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”. Roan then said this means freedom in trans rights, women’s rights and freedom for all oppressed people. “It especially means freedom for all oppressed people in occupied territories.”